My Simple Recipe for Self-Care: What’s Yours?

Ah, summer. Fresh foods. Vacations. Family and me time.

All of this squeezed into 12 short weeks can make for a very busy time. We all feel it whizzing by.

So while I’m unpacking after a few luxurious weeks relaxing on Cape Cod with my family {these are images from our trip}, I have a question for you:

How are you taking good care of yourself this summer?

There are many different ways we nourish ourselves and eating whole food is only one of them. Self care is a big one, as we all well know.

Yet, I find in my own life that it can get tossed out first. What with obligations to family and work and… all the things!

A Not-so-simple Question

Recently, via Facebook, I asked my overachieving girlfriends about the ways they take care of themselves. Honestly, I don’t know what I was expecting…but I was blown away by the responses.

What emerged most of all is that each and every one of us has a lot of wisdom about how to best care for ourselves. How we employ that knowledge at certain times is another thing–and will be the subject of another post.

Right now, I’d like to share with you the “data crunch” summary of self-care strategies collected from my wise and powerful woman friends. {Note that some of these get covered in a single activity/non-activity you choose.}

Self Care Concepts in Action

1. Alone time: A bath or hot tub, a good book, a nap. {I like the sounds of all three in a row!} Journaling or writing, making art, making music. One friend takes a 24-hour retreat to the woods, a hotel or friend’s empty home, while another caring for young children “escapes” to a place of solitude in her mind {now that’s resourceful!}. Solitude, even while driving, recharges and renews. Here’s one to try: turn off the phone for a set period of time when you find yourself alone.
2. Moving outdoors: How funny that not a single person mentioned going to the gym! So, it’s not exercise, per se, but movement combined with being outdoors that brings the most benefit to our whole selves. Walking with and without dogs, running on roads or trails, hiking, biking, kayaking all allow us to fully inhabit our bodies out in the wide world, taking in fresh air and sunshine {or not}. One friend takes a daily “forest bath.” This is the Japanese practice called shinrin-yoku, which posits that simply walking in nature has profound rejuvenating and restorative effects. How intriguing!
3. Meditation: Hold on. This takes many forms–not only sitting “in meditation.” Gardening, cooking and baking, walking and yoga are all forms of moving meditation. The mind becomes focused and clear, thoughts wander through like clouds drifting across the sky, the breath is smooth and full. You are focused and  conscious of being alive. Bear in mind that there is no time minimum requirement ;). This is how I manage to do the dishes.
4. Fun Indulgences: Dinner with true friends, laughter, chocolate, wine or whiskey {here’s an intriguing essay on why women drink}, massage, pedicures, watching a great show or movie {especially alone}–this takes as many forms as you can imagine. Guilt of any kind is immediately disqualifying. How often do you indulge for your own fulfillment?
5. Self-love: Nobody has it all or can do it all, despite appearances. Okay, I know that we all know that in our minds, but have we assimilated that fact in our hearts, too? Imagine treating yourself–and that includes self-talk–the way you treat your best friend. Be gentle with yourself and I will do the same.

Here is some of the choicest self-loving advice from my friends to take to heart:

• “Each day I choose to keep trying.”
• “Say no to everything else and yes to yourself.”
• “Forgive myself and rest.”

Three Yoga Poses

Here’s the funny thing about human nature: we often do not do the very thing we know will make us feel better. This goes double for women.

Of course, I can only speak for myself. For example, I love yoga more than just about any other form of movement or body work.

It brings me so many benefits on every level. I’ve used it to recover from rotator cuff injuries, temper tantrums {my own and others’} and writing deadline anxiety. It’s like a shot in the arm that does the trick every time, and the reward accumulates over time.

And yet, when I’m stressed out or have a sore neck or feel overtired, do I run to my yoga mat? Truthfully, not often enough.

In July, I spent a week in San Francisco all on my own. I wasn’t there for yoga, but I stayed right near a Yoga Tree studio {5 stars!} and I signed up for daily classes. It renewed my practice and the memory of all rewards of having a regular yoga practice.

So, now when I wake up in the morning, I go straight to my yoga mat. All I plan to do is three yoga poses.

Three. Simple. Poses.

Just for fun, I put my daily practice into a recipe format you may like to follow.

So, what’s your recipe for self-care?

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